Job of suspended city attorney goes to his wife

August 19, 2003 at 6:19 PM EST - Updated June 23 at 11:34 AM

GENEVA, Ohio (AP) - When the city's attorney had his law license suspended, the city council hired the man's wife as his replacement.

The City Council of this northeast Ohio community near Lake Erie accepted the leave of absence of City Solicitor Mark Gardner on Monday night. The Ohio Supreme Court suspended his law license on Aug. 13.

"Why must this panel bend over backwards and ignore well-established law just to encourage law officers to be slovenly and careless," he said in a court filing for a client convicted of driving with a suspended license.

In a 6-1 ruling, the high court said Gardner, an attorney since 1993, was guilty of knowingly making false accusations. His license to practice was suspended for six months.

Lauren Gardner said she has practiced law for 10 years and is familiar with legal issues the city has faced.